• Carlene airs side on ‘careless whisper’ • Matt Monro Jr. coming for Christmas shows

Curtain-raisers:

• For the first time, Caloocan City Councilor Marjorie Barretto appeared yesterday at a Quezon City court for the third pre-trial hearing of the annullment petition she filed against Dennis Padilla. Marjorie was not present during the first two hearings. According to legal experts, there’s a good chance Marjorie will win the case because of the ground she cited in her petition. Funfare won’t elaborate but it has something to do with Dennis’ marriage to his first wife.

• Aside from the duo’s Big Dome stint, America is also mounting its All My Life...Live! concert at the St. La Salle Coliseum in Bacolod City on Dec. 2, produced by Aris Demavivas (who was also behind the shows of The Lettermen and Paul Williams in Iloilo City). Included in America’s repertoire are their hits All My Life, Horse With No Name, Ventura Highway and Inspector Mills. For inquiries about the Bacolod show, call Aris at 0917-8450903.

• By insistent public demand, Insiang will have another rerun at the CCP for four weekends starting last Saturday until Dec. 9. Showtime is Fridays at 8 p.m., Saturdays at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m., and Sundays at 3 p.m. Based on the Lino Brocka classic topbilled by Hilda Koronel, Insiang has Ricky Davao as male lead. For tickets (P500 each), call CCP at 832—1125 or 832-3661.

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If you think that the controversial love triangle involving Carlene Aguilar, Dennis Trillo (father of Carlene’s love child Calex Andrea) and Cristine Reyes is over after Carlene’s guesting on The Buzz last Sunday, you have to think again.

For several days, all that we’ve been  hearing and reading about was Carlene Aguilar’s “careless whisper” into Cristine’s ears during their chance encounter at the Broadway Centrum last week — you know, that, according to reports, Carlene told Cristine that Dennis didn’t really love her (Cristine) and the only thing he wanted from her was sex.

Anyway, Cristine has filed a case of oral defamation and grave slander against Carlene because of that “only sex” whisper and Carlene’s alleged “slanderous” text messages to her. Cristine was so badly affected — “Traumatized” was how Cristine’s Ate Ara Mina put it — by the incident that she failed to attend her own presscon for her first solo starrer, Green Paradise over the weekend, apologizing to the media that she wasn’t ready to face them.

In the spirit of fair play, after giving Cristine ample space, Funfare is giving Carlene the floor by printing portions of what she said on The Buzz, to wit:

l. Carlene said she went to Broadway Centrum not to make sugod (confront) Cristine but to give a pasalubong from the States for her friend Jenny Miller who was, like Cristine, a guest on All-Star Videoke Challenge (being taped that day). “Cristine happened to be there so I decided to talk to her,” said Carlene. “I wanted to meet her personally. I shook her hand” (and that’s when she whispered something to Cristine) “and when I turned my back to go, I heard somebody said, ‘Pangit!’ I looked back but I didn’t go back to Cristine. In  the video, it appeared that I was trying to get back at Cristine.”

2. Yes, even when she was in the States waiting for the birth of Calex, Carlene said that she had heard about Dennis and Cristine having an affair but Dennis denied it when she confronted him during a phone call. (But Carlene added that Dennis did apologize to her later on and admitted that he committed ‘something wrong’.) “So I called (Cristine) twice about it and I called her again once when I came back,” said Carlene. Their conversation was, as Cristine herself confirmed, cordial. Carlene said that she and Dennis were trying “to fix” their relationship at that time.

3. Carlene said she had the right to feel that way because when  she was pregnant, she was alone in  the US and away from her family (she stayed with her grandma), virtually suffering in silence and, she admitted to Funfare during a short phone chat yesterday, “Samantala silang dalawa ang nagsasaya. Wasn’t it unfair?”

4. Ara Mina said that Dennis has apologized to Cristine and her family and demanded for Carlene to do the same in  public. “Dennis told me that Cristine wanted me to apologize. Why should I apologize to her in public when  what happened was among her, Dennis and me, sa aming tatlo lang? She was the one who blew it up.” Asked if Cristine did something bad to her, Carlene said, “Hindi naman po siguro ako maiinis sa kanya kung wala siyang ginawa.”

5. Asked if she’s going to fight it out in court, Carlene said, “Yes, I will.”

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Guess who’s coming to town to bring Christmas cheers and joy through a bagful of the greatest hits of one of the world’s best balladeers?

It could well be Santa Claus for thousands of music fans, for the glad tidings is that no less than Matt Monro, Jr., the fast-rising British singing sensation, is arriving next month (December) to re-live the music and memories of his celebrated father and namesake, the legendary Matt Monro, during a series of Christmas performances that will highlight the Philippine leg of his current world tour.

Entitled Matt Monro, Jr.: The Memories Tour, the concert series to be mounted by Steve O’Neal Productions will open on Dec. 7 at the Ynares Center in Antipolo City; to be followed by other shows on Dec. 11 at the Cebu Parklane International Hotel, Cebu City; Dec. 15 at the One MGM Resort Hotel, Boracay; and Dec. 18 at the Centennial Hotel and International Convention Center, Iloilo City.

Faith Cuneta will be featured as special guest.

The concert tour will reunite Matt Monro, Jr. with Pinoy fans more than a year after his successful debut appearance here in December, 2006 through a pair of pre-Christmas shows at the New Pagcor Grand Theater in Parañaque City and at the Hard Rock Café in Makati City.

Until then, it was the senior Matt Monro — dubbed as “the British Sinatra” – who, despite having been gone for the past 22 years, remained at the center of continuing public attention and interest, enjoying massive appeal and popularity despite the advent of a new generation of talents with new styles and techniques.

Last year’s musical event gave fans the unique opportunity not only to re-visit the musical legacy that Matt, Sr. has bequeathed to the music world but also to discover a worthy musical heir he left behind in the person of his son and namesake, a singer and performer in his own right with his own talent and style.

Promoter Steve O’Neal disclosed to Funfare that Matt Jr. is expected to enthrall his audience once more in his coming concert series through a new and exciting lineup of songs, including selections from his new album, If He Could See Me Now.

The show will feature a mix of nostalgia and memories of the late British music icon as it showcases the singing talent of his son who will perform in his own version and style the immortal hits of his father, such as Born Free, From Russia With Love, Softly As I Leave You, Walk Away, Yesterday and Portrait Of My Love.

Born 43 years ago in Surrey but raised in Eating, both in England, Matt, Jr. had early intimations of his musical talent when, at the age of 13, he performed a duet with his father on stage, making him realize that he wanted to follow in his footsteps and to repeat that unforgettable evening with his father.

The death of the British music icon in 1985 shattered his son’s dream of sharing the stage again with him, but it only strengthened the resolve of Matt, Jr. to explore his singing potentials and pursue a career in music.

A breakthrough came in 1986 when Matt’s performance before an audience of over 2000 people during a tribute organized for his departed father at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London left a favorable impression on David Jacobs, the popular disc jockey from Radio 2, who subsequently announced in his program that “a new singer has emerged.”

He recently performed before a 1,200 sell-out engagement at the renowned Dublin National Concert Hall in Dublin, Ireland.

(Tickets to the Ynares Center concert are available at Ticketnet outlets at SM Department Stores, or call Ticketnet at 911-5555.)